Rhineland - Softcover

Denis Whitaker; Shelagh Whitaker

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0749305886 ISBN 13: 9780749305888

Publisher: Mandarin, 1991

Synopsis

By the grim winter of 1944 the War was clearly won, yet it took six agonizing weeks for a million Allied men to conquer the tiny tract of the Rhineland. That battle claimed a total of 117,000 casualties. The aim of this book is to provide an account of the battle and to explain how such carnage was possible. The authors' view is that weak leadership at Allied Command was compounded by vacillation and squabbling among Eisenhower's generals, and that, by contrast, the German commanders were disciplined, resourceful and determined to fight to the bitter end. The award-winning authors, both from distinguished military families, also wrote "Tug of War".

About this title

From Publishers Weekly

The authors, Canadian freelance writers, describe WW II operations code-named Grenade, Veritable, Blockbuster, Plunder and Varsity, a six-week series of battles in 1945, in which American, British and Canadian troops under General Omar Bradley and Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery breached the Siegfried Line and crossed the Rhine. Probably the best-known maneuver of the campaign was the pivotal seizure by the U.S. 1st Army of the Remagen bridge on March 8, which opened the way for the breakthrough. In this popularized account, the authors pay tribute to the skillful German resistance (especially the holding action and disciplined withdrawal of the 1st Parachute Army under General Alfred Schlemm), crediting its ferocity in large part to the ill-conceived Allied insistence on "unconditional surrender." The book includes excellent maps, enabling readers to follow the complex unfolding of the campaign. Military Book Club selection.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Drawing on archival information and interviews with American, Canadian, British, and German participants, the authors recount the bitter and fierce fighting on the Western Front in the final assault of World War II. Covering the period from the conclusion of the Battle of the Bulge to the taking of the bridge at Remagen, the Whitakers describe the hell of the front lines and the battle for power raging among the generals within the Allied command. The book dispels the notion that the German army was washed up after the Ardennes campaign. The ability of the Germans to improvise and reorganize as they struggled to defend the Rhineland is shown in the mounting casualties among the Allied soldiers. This popular account deserves a place in most collections of World War II history. Recommended. Military Book Club selection.
- George F. Scheck, Naval Underwater Systems Lib . , Newport, R . I .
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Mandarin
• Publication date: 1991
• ISBN 10: 0749305886
• ISBN 13: 9780749305888
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 411